The Ackerman Program on Jewish and Western Civilization

The Ackerman Program on Jewish and Western Civilization is an educational and research center focused on the influence of Jewish ideas and Jewish history on the Western world and the American republic.

The Ackerman Program offers unique undergraduate courses on the foundational ideas and enduring questions at the heart of Jewish and Western civilization.

The Ackerman Program features:

Unique undergraduate courses on:

• The Hebrew Bible and the Human Condition
• Jewish Thought and Western Philosophy
• Jews and American Democracy

A new study abroad program in Israel, allowing students to spend time in Jerusalem, Tel Aviv, and other locations in Israel.

Key areas of study include:

• The Land of the Hebrew Bible
• Jerusalem and Athens

Intensive study of modern Hebrew language, literature, and culture

The Ackerman Program actively promotes the study of Hebrew as one of the foundational languages of Western civilization and the living language of the Jewish people. Hebrew language is explored as the gateway to understanding the continuity of Jewish life from the biblical age to the age of modern Zionism and to exploring the masterworks of modern Hebrew literature and culture.

Advanced courses within the School of Civic Leadership

Jewish ideas and Jewish history are central to every key field of study and academic major within the School of Civic Leadership:

• In the “Civics Honors” major, students will have the opportunity to study the unique role of Hebraic ideas in shaping the moral, political, and cultural imagination of the Western mind and the American republic.
• In the “Great Books” major, students will explore the foundational texts of Jewish tradition, the insights of Jewish philosophy into the nature of man, and the conversation between Jewish and Western thought in shaping Western culture.
• In the “Strategy and Statecraft” major, students will explore Jewish ideas on the nature of war and peace, the lessons of Jewish survival from ancient to modern times, and the strategic achievements and challenges of modern Israel.

A regular series of conferences, speakers, and public events on the big questions facing Jewish and Western civilization

The Ackerman Program creates a wide range of opportunities for undergraduate and graduate students to participate in important discussions and develop as future civic leaders themselves.